During the last decade, the prescription drug approval period has been shortened and the number of drugs receiving approval has risen. While most of these drugs are safe, the emergence of information sufficient to prompt a safety recall often does not take place before widespread usage of the drug by a large patient population over many months or years. In other words, some safety issues do not become apparent until after a drug has been taken by a large patient population over a period of time.
As recognized by the present inventors, what is needed is a method and system for early identification of safety concerns of new drugs.